Events and More to Thwart Metro's Closing Doors

Remember, you have options

By ASHA BEH

Updated 3:15 PM EST, Sat, Oct 10, 2009

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There are plenty of events happening in DC this weekend and even though Metro has shut down a few stations and there will be street closures, you can still get out and about -- or just come out, as the case may be.

First, the events…

The National Equality March is scheduled to take place at noon on Sunday, Oct. 11. The March will begin at McPherson Square and reach the west side of the U.S. Capitol at approximately 2 p.m. The planned route is south on 15th Street, NW, West on H Street, south on 17th Street, east on Pennsylvania Avenue, to 3rd Street, NW. The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) plans to implement rolling street closures along the march route.
- Anyone leaving the National Equality March from the U.S. Capitol and returning to Union Station and all Red Line stations should walk north on 1st St., and make a right onto Louisiana Ave., NE, to Union Station.
- Those leaving the National Equality March from the U.S. Capitol and traveling to RFK Stadium should walk south on 3rd St., to the Federal Center SW Metrorail station and board the Orange Line toward New Carrollton or the Blue Line toward the Largo Town Center.
The Breast Cancer 3-Day wraps up in the District Sunday. Walkers will start at 10:45 a.m. at DuPont Circle to finish the final leg of their 60-mile walk.
Bike for the Heart is also on Sunday. The event, which raises money to raise awareness of heart disease in women, runs along Pennsylvania Ave. Abe Pollin Way (F Street, NW between 6th and 7th Streets) will be closed from 4 a.m. to 5 p.m. for the ride. In addition, there will be rolling closures along the route, which includes:
- 7th Street, NW
- Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- 15th Street, NW
- Constitution Avenue, NW/NE
- 1st Street, NE

In case you've been living under a tree in Rock Creek Park, you've probably heard about Metro's closure of the Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter and Waterfront-SEU stations, as well as no Green Line service at the L'Enfant Plaza station, while "major track work" is being done this weekend.

Metro's advising adding at least 30 minutes to your travel time, and is offering free shuttle buses all weekend between the Anacostia, Navy Yard and Gallery Place-Chinatown stations to help you get around. So while you might not be able to use Metro rail, there's always Metro bus.

It's times like these when taxis and friends with cars really come in handy . (And to those friends, we'd still love you even if you didn't have a car. Really.)

But if you do take Metro, here are their tips:

For north-south travel in the downtown area, Metro says locals and visitors alike can also use the Convention Center-SW Waterfront route of the DC Circulator.
Customers who normally use the Navy Yard Metrorail station on the Green Line can walk to the Capitol South Metrorail station to catch the Blue or Orange Line.
Customers traveling to the Archives/Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter Metrorail station can instead exit at the Gallery Pl-Chinatown Metrorail station or the Federal Triangle Metrorail station and walk to Archives/Navy Memorial station via 7th St., NW.
Customers riding the Yellow Line from Virginia will be rerouted to follow the Blue Line and they can transfer at Metro Center to the Red Line and ride one stop to Gallery Pl-Chinatown Metrorail station.
Customers riding the Green Line from the Greenbelt Metrorail station can transfer at the Fort Totten Metrorail station and instead take the Red Line toward downtown Washington.

Metro says it's replacing the entire rail interlocking (four switches) at the L’Enfant Plaza Metrorail station and the Yellow Line Bridge over the Potomac River is closed while Metro conducts an annual safety inspection and replaces rail fasteners. The track switch replacement is work recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board.

As a result of this weekend’s work, the Green Line is operating in two segments -- between the Branch Avenue and Navy Yard Metrorail stations and between the Greenbelt and Gallery Pl-Chinatown Metrorail stations.

Through Monday, Oct. 12, the Yellow Line is operating between the Huntington and Stadium-Armory Metrorail stations with a stop at the L’Enfant Plaza Metrorail station on the lower level.

Metro says this weekend’s work does not impacting the Red, Blue and Orange lines.

Of course, if you want to avoid the traffic and the crowds and you love golf, you're in luck. Just stay at home and watch Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh and company at the Presidents Cup on NBC4.

Foursomes and four-ball matches will be on air until 9 p.m. Saturday; coverage of singles matches starts at noon and goes until 6 p.m. Sunday.